1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a carbon nanotube film supporting structure and a method for using the carbon nanotube film supporting structure.
2. Description of Related Art
Carbon nanotubes are tubules of carbon generally having diameters ranging from 0.5 nanometers to 100 nanometers. Carbon nanotubes have recently attracted a great deal of attention for use in different applications such as field emitters, gas storage and separation, chemical sensors, and high strength composites, because of their thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties.
However, because carbon nanotubes are microscopic structures, it is necessary to assemble the carbon nanotubes at a macroscopic level. Moreover, carbon nanotube film is only one kind of macroscopic structure of carbon nanotubes.
Recently, as disclosed by the pre-grant publication US20080248235 to Feng et al., a free-standing carbon nanotube film has been fabricated. The carbon nanotube film can be used in many different fields. For example, the carbon nanotube film can be used as a transparent conductive film in a touch panel or a liquid display, which can be flexible.
However, this kind of carbon nanotube film is very thin. In the carbon nanotube film, the adjacent carbon nanotubes are combined and are attracted by the van der Waals force therebetween, which is relatively weak. An external mechanical force applied on the carbon nanotube film may easily damage or destroy the film. Furthermore, the carbon nanotube film has an extremely large specific surface area, which makes the carbon nanotubes adhesive and difficult to handle, particularly if a large amount of carbon nanotube films are fabricated.
What is needed, therefore, is to provide a carbon nanotube film supporting structure and a method for using the carbon nanotube film supporting structure, which can overcome the above-described shortcomings.